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Petroscirtes lupus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Petroscirtes lupus
Juvenile
Red Rock Estuary, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Blenniiformes
Family: Blenniidae
Genus: Petroscirtes
Species:
P. lupus
Binomial name
Petroscirtes lupus
(De Vis, 1885)
Synonyms

Salarius lupus De Vis, 1885

Petroscirtes lupus, the wolf fangbelly, is a species of combtooth blenny found in coral reefs in the western Pacific ocean. This species reaches a length of 13 centimetres (5.1 in) TL.[2] A variably greyish, brown or greenish blenny with six large dark blotches, white dots and dashes on upper sides, and dark dots below. It has two large canines in the lower jaw which are used for defence, although this species is not venomous, and they have been known to bite if handled.[3] They live among sea grass beds, seaweed or the empty shells of molluscs. The female lays her eggs on the interior of a mollusc shell and the male guards them.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Williams, J.T. (2014). "Petroscirtes lupus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T48342394A48348867. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T48342394A48348867.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Petroscirtes lupus". FishBase. February 2019 version.
  3. ^ Dianne J. Bray, 2011, Brown Sabretooth Blenny, Petroscirtes lupus, in Fishes of Australia, accessed 16 Oct 2014, http://www.fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/4755